FROM CONCEPTTO FUNCTIONAL PROTOTYPEIN WEEKS
Validate your hardware concept before committing to production tooling and NRE.
Ankh uses a sprint-based prototyping methodology that compresses the gap between concept and working hardware. We make deliberate tradeoffs — dev-board-first versus custom PCB, 3D printed enclosures versus soft tooling — based on your project's risk profile, spending prototype budget on risk reduction rather than premature refinement. Every prototype decision is documented against the production target so your path to manufacturing starts from the first sprint.
What We Build
Dev-Board-First Prototyping
For early-stage concepts where the primary risk is software and system behavior, Ankh builds on proven SBC and development kit platforms — Raspberry Pi CM4, Nvidia Jetson Orin NX, BeagleBone AI-64, Nordic nRF9160 DK, STM32 Nucleo — to get functional firmware and application code running within the first sprint before investing in custom PCB NRE.
Custom PCB Prototypes
When dev-board limitations constrain the prototype — size, power consumption, connector placement, cost target — Ankh moves to custom PCB prototypes using 4-6 layer stackups with standard via rules to keep prototype board costs under $200 per panel for early iterations.
3D Printed Enclosure Prototypes
FDM prototypes for form-factor and mechanical fit validation, SLA prints for high-detail surface finish review and early user testing — designed parametrically in SolidWorks or Fusion 360 from day one so the geometry transitions to injection mold tooling rather than being redone from scratch.
Sprint-Based Prototype Iterations
Prototyping structured as defined 2-3 week sprints with explicit entry criteria, exit criteria, and risk items — each ending with a structured review documenting what was validated, what failed, what changed, and the production delta implications.
BOM Risk & Supply Chain Analysis
Early prototype BOMs audited for component availability, lead time risk, single-source dependencies, and lifecycle status — long-lead-time items identified in sprint 1 so procurement begins immediately, and poor-production-viability components flagged so architectural alternatives are evaluated before the BOM is frozen.
Functional Validation & Risk Burn-Down
Each sprint designed around a specific risk burn-down objective — validating a sensor interface, proving out a battery life model, confirming wireless range in the deployment environment — with explicit pass/fail criteria written before building so results drive real decisions.
Prototype-to-Production Delta Management
Every prototype decision (module instead of discrete radio, hand-assembled connectors, development-grade firmware) documented with its production equivalent and estimated cost/schedule impact — delivering a comprehensive engineering-to-manufacturing handoff brief by the end of the prototyping program.
Hybrid SBC + Custom Board Architecture
Complex systems architected with an SBC for high-level compute (Raspberry Pi CM4, Jetson) paired with a custom peripheral board handling analog signal conditioning, power management, and real-time I/O — letting prototype software development begin before full custom hardware is ready.
How We Work
Prototype Strategy Workshop
A half-day workshop maps requirements, identifies the highest-risk unknowns, and defines what 'validated' means for this program. The output is a sprint-sequenced plan with platform strategy, budget, and schedule.
Sprint 1: Architecture Proof-of-Concept
Sprint 1 targets the highest-risk technical question — sensor accuracy, ML latency budget, radio range — using dev kits and breakout boards to generate real hardware data. The result is a go/no-go decision on core architecture backed by evidence, not simulation.
Iterative Hardware Refinement
Subsequent sprints converge toward the production form factor — breakout boards consolidate to custom PCBs, dev-kit modules give way to production MCU selections, enclosures evolve from FDM to SLA. Each iteration targets the next most critical item on the risk burn-down list.
BOM & Supply Chain Audit
The full BOM is audited against Octopart, Findchips, and distributor inventory to flag long-lead items — custom inductors, RF modules, secure elements — so procurement starts before design freeze. Catching sourcing failures here prevents costly BOM pivots after production tooling begins.
Pilot Build Coordination
The final iteration is a 5–25 unit pilot build through a contract assembler using production-intent processes rather than hand-built one-offs, exposing assembly yield issues and tolerance stack-ups before tooling investment. Pilot units also serve regulatory pre-compliance testing, investor demos, and early customer trials.
Production Handoff Package
The engagement closes with finalized schematics and layout files, a production-delta document mapping every prototype compromise to its production equivalent, a preliminary DFM review, and a risk register of open items.
The Prototyping Details That Compress Time to Market
Dev-Board-First vs. Custom PCB: The Real Tradeoff
Dev-board-first saves 6–8 weeks and $15–30K in PCB NRE when the primary unknowns are firmware or software behavior. When viability depends on power, size, or cost targets a dev board cannot approximate, custom PCB is faster overall — the dev-board prototype would only answer questions the production team doesn't need answered.
Electronics DesignPrototype Iteration Planning & Risk Burn-Down
Every unvalidated assumption is tracked in a risk burn-down register; each sprint is assigned a subset to close, and a failed item triggers an immediate architecture review rather than a workaround. Structured risk burn-down is what lets us give meaningful schedule estimates rather than open-ended timelines.
Product StrategyManaging BOM Risk Before It Becomes a Production Crisis
Prototype BOMs built on poorly-available parts create serious production risk — BOM assessment scores every line item on availability, lifecycle, and single-source exposure, triggering immediate alternate searches below threshold. Prototype components are verified to price-break correctly at production quantities, preventing a $2 prototype part costing $12 at 10,000 units.
Manufacturing Readiness
Validate your hardware concept before committing to production tooling and NRE.
Rapid Prototyping Across Ankh's Product Range
Every product category has a different prototype risk profile — we tailor the methodology accordingly.
Wearable Electronics
Form-factor and ergonomics are validated with SLA prints and flexible PCB prototypes before tooling investment
View ProductMedical Devices
Prototype plan explicitly maps to IEC 62304 software classification and pre-clinical testing requirements
View ProductCold Chain Monitoring
Sensor accuracy and cellular connectivity are validated in temperature chamber tests before custom PCB investment
View ProductStructural Monitoring
Vibration sensor characterization and LoRa range testing in realistic deployment environments in sprint 1
View ProductIndustrial Equipment Monitoring
CAN/Modbus interface prototyped on DIN-rail dev hardware before custom form-factor PCB design
View ProductAI Vision Systems
Nvidia Jetson Orin NX used for ML pipeline prototyping before migrating to custom carrier board for production
View ProductPOS & Kiosk Hardware
Full-scale 3D printed enclosure mock-ups used for UX and installation workflow validation with end customers
View ProductWireless Communication
RF link budget validated with development-kit radios in target deployment environment before antenna design begins
View ProductData Loggers
Prototype logging firmware with production-representative storage and retrieval tested for data integrity under power loss
View ProductRuggedized Devices
MIL-STD-810 shock and vibration screening on prototype units before enclosure design is finalized
View ProductSmart Home Automation
Matter/Thread commissioning workflow prototyped with Nordic and Silicon Labs dev kits before custom silicon selection
View ProductPower Monitoring
CT and shunt current sensing accuracy characterized on prototype boards across full temperature range before production BOM freeze
View ProductPrototypes That Answer Real Questions
The most common prototyping failure is hardware that proves the team can build but doesn't answer the questions that determine success. Explicit pass/fail criteria before every sprint ensure failures trigger architecture changes rather than workarounds.
Production Delta Documentation From Day One
Most programs end with engineering scrambling to reconstruct prototype-to-production differences from memory. A live production delta document from sprint one captures every compromise and its production equivalent — so the manufacturing brief is complete the day prototyping wraps.
Integrated Hardware-Firmware Prototyping
Hardware without working firmware only validates assembly, not system behavior. Firmware engineers embedded in every sprint ensure each iteration delivers exercised hardware, compressing the build cycles needed to reach a production-ready design.
Deliverables
Prototype Strategy Document
Sprint plan, risk burn-down register, platform selection rationale, and budget/schedule estimate for the full prototyping program.
Working Prototype Hardware
Functional prototype units — dev-board assembly, custom PCB, or hybrid — with all systems exercised by working firmware as of the final sprint.
Enclosure Prototype
3D printed enclosure prototype (FDM or SLA per finish requirement) with mechanical drawings and STEP files ready for tooling quotation.
Sprint Review Reports
Per-sprint documentation of what was tested, test results, pass/fail outcomes, decisions made, and implications for subsequent sprints.
BOM Risk Assessment
Full BOM audit with availability scores, lifecycle flags, single-source alerts, and recommended alternates for flagged components.
Production Delta Document
Comprehensive mapping of every prototype compromise to its production equivalent, with estimated cost and schedule impact for each delta item.
Schematic & Layout Source Files
KiCad or Altium schematic and layout files for all custom PCB prototype iterations, with component footprints and design notes.
Prototype Firmware Source
Git repository containing prototype firmware with README documenting build environment, programming procedure, and known limitations relative to the production target.
Prototype deliverables scale with program scope — a 2-sprint proof-of-concept has a lighter documentation footprint than a 6-sprint production-delta program.
Often Paired With Rapid Prototyping
Electronics Design
Prototype findings feed directly into the production electronics design engagement, with hardware engineers maintaining continuity across both phases.
ExploreFirmware Development
Prototype firmware is architected with production intent so it transitions without a complete rewrite.
ExploreMechanical Design
Prototype enclosures evolve into injection-mold-ready designs through a structured DFM transition.
ExploreManufacturing Readiness
The production delta document produced during prototyping is the primary input to the manufacturing readiness engagement that follows.
ExploreWork That Demonstrates the Standard
4-Sprint Prototype Program for Industrial Vibration Monitor
Ankh ran a 4-sprint program covering MEMS resolution validation, CAN bus timing characterization, a custom PCB integration build, and a 25-unit pilot for a predictive maintenance startup validating their vibration monitoring concept. A BOM audit in Sprint 2 caught a sensor IC with a 26-week lead time, triggering a redesign that saved an estimated 5-month production delay.
Read the Case StudyRaspberry Pi CM4 to Custom SoM Prototype Transition for AI Camera
Sprint 1 on a Raspberry Pi CM4 validated the full MIPI CSI-2 capture, TensorRT, and RTSP pipeline in software for an AI vision startup; Sprint 2 replaced it with a minimal custom carrier that exposed two DFM issues before tooling. Sprint 1 firmware transferred with only BSP-level changes, saving an estimated 6 weeks of software bring-up.
Read the Case StudyReady to Validate Your Concept on Real Hardware?Structured sprints. Specific risk burn-down. Production-intent from day one.
Ankh designs prototype programs around your specific risk profile — every sprint structured to answer the questions that matter before you spend money on tooling.